Lessons from Long Term Solo Travel

Travel lightly.

Easier to keep track of your things if you have less things. Also, it’s easier on your back, especially if you have far to walk.

Another tip: rolling bags tend to do poorly on dirt and cobblestone roads. Sick to backpacks unless you’re going completely modern urban.

People are the same everywhere.

And by that I mean “people everywhere are kind, hospitable, and are more likely to take you in for a meal than steal your wallet.”

Everyone just wants to be treated with respect. Everyone enjoys being listened to. Everyone enjoys teaching others about something they love.

Always treat everyone with compassion. But that doesn’t mean trust everyone blindly. There are also rascals in every country.

Expect the best, plan for the worst.

Be open to what the world has to offer and be ready for when it offers nothing but headaches.

You’re a fool.

And don’t try to act otherwise. No matter how well educated you are or how much status you have at home, it means nothing when you have to ask a stranger how to flush the toilet.

Don’t be afraid to look stupid. Accept your status as a dumb foreigner. You can’t know everything, especially when you just arrive somewhere. In fact, it puts others at ease to be able to humble yourself, and it allows you to learn about the lives of others in ways that would otherwise be closed to you.

You will be drawn to adventure stores at home and furniture stores abroad.

It’s just how it is after a while.

Having expectations of what a place will be like will inevitably make you miserable.

You have to see it as it is and learn to love it regardless. Some places will be easier for you to love than others.

Find wonder in little things.

How the light filters through the local flora. The sound of unfamiliar crossing signals. The selection of items in the local convenience store. Smells wafting from the restaurants or rivers. How often you hear someone singing.

One selfless gesture sparks another.

It just does. So be kind.

The world is as safe or as dangerous as you let it be.

Even the “safest towns to travel to as a solo traveller” have rascals and issues of their own, they’ll take advantage of you if you let them.

Even conflict zones can be hospitable.

Just be aware of your surroundings, no matter where you are.

When you are responsible for yourself and no one else, you shape up quickly.

Got on the wrong train? That’s your fault. All the restaurants closed when you got in town? Too bad. Fumbled a potential date and ran away to another country? Oops.

All you can do is do better next time. And the wonderful thing about wandering is that no one will know about your previous mistakes. You can build a better version of yourself every time you relocate, or even every morning, without the weight of the version of you that other people remember/expect you to be.

You can take this mindset back home.

It helps you appreciate where you came from. How long have you taken it for granted? And if “home” isn’t clear yet, that’s fine too.